2011 Recipient

2011 Golden Spoke Recipient – Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa

Shotgun Tom Kelly, Andy Leeka, Mayor Villaragosa, Tom LaBonge

Antonio R. Villaraigosa is the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles. He was first sworn in as Mayor on July 1, 2005. His second term began on July 1, 2009. As Mayor of Los Angeles, Villaraigosa has pursued an agenda of making Los Angeles the safest big city in America, building a 21st century transportation system, achieving fundamental and far-reaching education reform, spurring economic development by eliminating government red tape and streamlining the City bureaucracy, and making Los Angeles a national model of sustainability and green growth. Under Villaraigosa’s leadership,Los Angeleshas reached a number of historic milestones including makingLos Angelesa bicycle friendly city:

Bike Lanes:

Since the Mayor has taken office, 54 miles of bicycle lanes have been installed.

The city’s latest Bicycle Plan calls for increasing the installation of bicycle lanes by a factor of 4 to 40 miles per year.

The City is currently conducting a pilot program to study whether sharrows increase bicyclist safety. Sharrows have been installed on 6 city streets, and the LADOT will collect before and after data on motorist behavior and reaction to sharrow pavement markings denoting road space shared by cyclists and motorists.

Funding:

Mayor worked with the City Council to dedicate 10% of the funds that the City receives from Measure R to fund bicycle and pedestrian projects.

The Mayor initiated a policy change at the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) to increase the amount of funding available for bicycle projects in the agency’s Call for Projects. In the latest call for projects, the share of funding for bicycles was increased from 7% to 15%.

Other Policy Changes:

The Mayor worked with the MTA to remove the peak-hour restrictions on bicycles on MTA rail. Passengers with bicycles can now use the rail system throughout the day without restriction.

The Mayor is an active supporter of SB 910, Senator Alan Lowenthal’s bill to mandate a safe passing distance that motorists must give bicyclists.